This application is based on an application No. 10-164705 filed in Japan, the content of which is hereby incorporated by reference.
(1) Field of the Invention
This invention relates to a method and an apparatus for copying data from an optical recording medium to another recording medium, and relates to the optical recording medium, and specifically, relates to a technique for restricting the number of such copy operations and restricting objects to which data is copied.
(2) Description of the Prior Art
Recently, as personal computers have become widespread, optical recording media (hereinafter referred to as optical discs) have come into wide use as mass-storage recording media. In optical discs, data is recorded on their data recording region by using optical characteristics.
Since the data recorded on optical discs is digital data, the data copied from an optical disc to another medium maintains the same quality as the original.
Accordingly, the sales of optical discs storing original data will decrease if media storing an unauthorized copy of the original data penetrate the market. The sales of optical discs will similarly decrease if unauthorized copying of the original data spreads among users.
A variety of techniques have been proposed to prevent such unauthorized copying of the original data from optical discs.
One of such techniques is encryption in which an encryption key is set in advance so that the use of the target data is permitted only when the encryption key is used. However, unauthorized use or copy of the target data cannot be prevented with this technique when the encryption key itself is reused.
Another technique has been proposed in which the history of the use of an optical disc is recorded on the optical disc itself. It is possible with this technique to prohibit unauthorized copying by judging whether the disc stores the original data or copied data by referring to the history, or prevent unauthorized installment of the disc by judging whether the disc has once been installed. However, these functions are only available for rewritable optical discs, not for read-only optical discs which are less expensive than rewritable optical discs.
Japanese Laid-Open Patent Application No. 8-106720 entitled xe2x80x9cMETHOD FOR PROHIBITING COPY OF RECORDING MEDIUM AND REPRODUCTION APPARATUSxe2x80x9d discloses a technique for preventing read-only optical discs from being copied. This technique utilizes a characteristic that data cannot be deleted from read-only optical discs storing original data and that data can be deleted from rewritable optical discs storing copies of the original data. According to the technique a program for executing the target data deletes the copied data only when a rewritable optical disc storing the data is loaded.
However, it is desired that this technical field is further improved since the above-introduced technique cannot be applied to all types of media to prevent unauthorized use or copy of data.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a copy restriction method and apparatus which can impose a restriction on copying of data from an optical disc to another medium, and also to provide an optical disc whose data is imposed a restriction in terms of copying.
(A) The above object is fulfilled by a copy restriction method for imposing a restriction on copying data from a data recording region of an optical recording medium to another medium, where a member removable by a user is attached to the data recording region of the optical recording medium, and the copying is performed by an apparatus which comprises a storage unit which stores information indicating a position where the member should be attached on the data recording region, the copy restriction method comprising: a detecting step for detecting a position where the member is attached to the data recording region and outputting information indicating the detected position; a judging step for judging whether the information output in the detecting step and the information stored in the storage unit indicate a same position; an instructing step for instructing the user to detach the member from the data recording region when it is judged in the judging step that the information output in the detecting step and the information stored in the storage unit indicate the same position; a checking step for checking whether the member is detached after the user is instructed to detach in the instructing step; and an executing step for executing copying of the data from the data recording region of the optical recording medium to the other medium only when it is confirmed in the checking step that the member is detached.
With the above-stated construction, the user removes the member from the optical recording medium when the data is copied from the optical recording medium to another medium. Once this happens, the data on the optical recording medium is prevented from being copied. This enables the present method to impose a restriction on copying data from an optical recording medium to another recording medium.
(B) The above object is also fulfilled by a copy restriction method for imposing a restriction on copying data from a data recording region of an optical recording medium to another medium, where one or more members removable by a user are attached to different positions on the data recording region of the optical recording medium, and the copying is performed by an apparatus which comprises a storage unit which stores information indicating a plurality of positions where members should be attached on the data recording region, the copy restriction method comprising: a detecting step for detecting one or more positions where the one or more members are attached to the data recording region and outputting information indicating the detected one or more positions; a judging step for judging whether the one or more positions indicated by the information output in the detecting step are included in the plurality of positions indicated by the information stored in the storage unit; an instructing step for instructing the user to detach one out of the one or more members from the data recording region when it is judged in the judging step that the one or more positions indicated by the information output in the detecting step are included in the plurality of positions indicated by the information stored in the storage unit; a checking step for checking whether the one out of the one or more members is detached after the user is instructed to detach in the instructing step; and an executing step for executing copying of the data from the data recording region of the optical recording medium to the other medium only when it is confirmed in the checking step that the member is detached.
With the above-stated construction, the user detaches one member from the optical recording medium each time data is copied from the optical recording medium to another recording medium. That is to say, it is possible to copy data as many times as the number of members. As a result, it is possible for this method to limit the number of times data is copied from an optical recording medium to another recording medium.
(C) In the above copy restriction method, the storage unit may further store information indicating operations which each correspond to one of the plurality of positions where members should be attached, and in the checking step, when it is confirmed that the member is detached, the member is identified, and in the executing step, an operation corresponding to the member identified in the detecting step is selected from the operations indicated by the information stored in the storage unit and the selected operation is executed only when the member is identified in the checking step.
With the above-stated construction, when one of the plurality of members is detached by the user, a corresponding operation is executed. As a result, a plurality of operations can be set.
(D) In the copy restriction method, the storage unit may further store information indicating operations which each correspond to a different state in which the one or more members are attached to the data recording region, and in the checking step, when it is confirmed that the one out of the one or more members is detached, a state in which remainder of the one or more members is attached is identified, and in the executing step, an operation corresponding to the state identified in the checking step is selected from the operations indicated by the information stored in the storage unit and the selected operation is executed only when the member is identified in the detecting step.
With the above-stated construction, when one of the plurality of members is detached by the user, an operation corresponding to the state of the remaining attached members is executed. As a result, a plurality of operations can be set.
(E) In the above copy restriction method, the member may disable reading of data covered by the member itself on the data recording region, and in the detecting step, the position where the member is attached to the data recording region is detected by detecting a position where data cannot be read, and in the checking step, whether the member is detached is checked by checking whether data at the position indicated by the information stored in the storage unit can be read.
With the above-stated construction, it is easy to detect the position at which the member is attached since the member disables reading of data covered by the member itself on the data recording region.
(F) In the above copy restriction method, the member may disable reading of data covered by the member itself on the data recording region, and predetermined data is recorded on the member, the storage unit stores the same data as the predetermined data recorded on the member, and in the detecting step, the position where the member is attached to the data recording region is detected by detecting a position where the predetermined data stored in the storage unit is read, and in the checking step, whether the member is detached is checked by checking whether data at the position indicated by the information stored in the storage unit is different from the same data as the predetermined data stored in the storage unit.
With the above-stated-construction, it is easy to detect the position at which the member is attached since the member disables reading of data covered by the member itself on the data recording region and predetermined data is recorded on the member.
(G) In the above copy restriction method, the optical recording medium may store the information indicating the position where the member should be attached on the data recording region, and the copy restriction method further comprises: a reading step for reading the information indicating the position from the optical recording medium and storing the read information into the storage unit, the reading step being executed before the judging step.
With the above-stated construction in which the optical recording medium stores the information indicating the position where the member should be attached on the data recording region and the information is read and stored in a storage unit, the information need not be prestored in a storage unit, and it is also possible for the member to be attached at a different position for each optical recording medium.
(H) In the above copy restriction method, in the judging step, it may be judged that the information output in the detecting step and the information stored in the storage unit indicate a same position when deviation of the position of the attached member from the position indicated by the information stored in the storage unit is in a range of xe2x88x9250 xcexcm to +50 xcexcm and it is judged that the information output in the detecting step and the information stored in the storage unit indicate different positions when the deviation is out of the range of xe2x88x9250 xcexcm to +50 xcexcm.
With the above-stated construction in which it is judged that the information output in the detecting step and the information stored in the storage unit indicate different positions when the deviation is out of the range of xe2x88x9250 xcexcm to +50 xcexcm, it is difficult for the user to attach a member to the same position satisfying the above condition once he/she detaches the member from the optical recording member.
(I) The above object is also fulfilled by a copy restriction apparatus for copying data from a data recording region of an optical recording medium to another medium, where a member removable by a user is attached to the data recording region of the optical recording medium, the copy restriction apparatus comprising: a storage unit for storing information indicating a position where the member should be attached on the data recording region; a detecting unit for detecting a position where the member is attached to the data recording region and outputting information indicating the detected position; a judging unit for judging whether the information output from the detecting unit and the information stored in the storage unit indicate a same position; an instructing unit for instructing the user to detach the member from the data recording region when the judging unit judges that the information output from the detecting unit and the information stored in the storage unit indicate the same position; a checking unit for checking whether the member is detached after the user is instructed to detach by the instructing unit; and an executing unit for executing copying of the data from the data recording region of the optical recording medium to the other medium only when the checking unit confirms that the member is detached.
With the above-stated construction, the same effect as (A) is achieved.
(J) The above object is also fulfilled by a copy restriction apparatus for copying data from a data recording region of an optical recording medium to another medium, where one or more members removable by a user are attached to different positions on the data recording region of the optical recording medium, the copy restriction apparatus comprising: a storage unit for storing information indicating a plurality of positions where members should be attached on the data recording region; a detecting unit for detecting one or more positions where the one or more members are attached to the data recording region and outputting information indicating the detected one or more positions; a judging unit for judging whether the one or more positions indicated by the information output from the detecting unit are included in the plurality of positions indicated by the information stored in the storage unit; an instructing unit for instructing the user to detach one out of the one or more members from the data recording region when it is judged by the judging unit that the one or more positions indicated by the information output from the detecting unit are included in the plurality of positions indicated by the information stored in the storage unit; a checking unit for checking whether the one out of the one or more members is detached after the user is instructed to detach by the instructing unit; and an executing unit for executing copying of the data from the data recording region of the optical recording medium to the other medium only when it is confirmed by the checking unit that the one out of the one or more members is detached.
With the above-stated construction, the same effect as (A) is achieved.
(K) The above object is also fulfilled by an optical recording medium on whose data recording region data is recorded by using optical characteristics, where a member removable by a user is attached to the data recording region of the optical recording medium, and the member disables reading of data covered by the member itself on the data recording region.
With the above-stated construction in which a member removable by a user is attached to the data recording region and the member disables reading of data covered by the member itself, the user is urged to detach the member from the optical recording medium when data is copied from the medium to another medium. This prevents the data from being copied after the member is detached. As a result, it is possible to impose a restriction on copying data from an optical recording medium to another recording medium.
(L) The above object is also fulfilled by an optical recording medium on whose data recording region data is recorded by using optical characteristics, where one or more members removable by a user are attached to different positions on the data recording region, and each of the one or more members disables reading of data covered by the member itself on the data recording region.
With the above-stated construction in which a plurality of members are attached to the data recording region of the optical recording region and disable reading of data covered by the members, the user is urged to detach one member from the optical recording medium when data is copied from the medium to another medium. This allows the user to copy data as many times as the number of members. Also, it is easy to detect the positions at which the members are attached since the members disable reading of data covered by the members themselves on the data recording region. As a result, it is possible to limit the number of times data is copied from an optical recording medium to another recording medium.
(M) In the above optical recording medium, predetermined data may be recorded on the member.
With the above-stated construction, it is easy to detect the position at which the member is attached since the member disables reading of data covered by the member itself on the data recording region and predetermined data is recorded on the member.
(N) The above optical recording medium may further store the information which indicates the position where the member should be attached on the data recording region.
With the above-stated construction in which the optical recording medium stores the information indicating the position where the member should be attached on the data recording region and the information is read and stored in a storage unit, the information need not be prestored in a storage unit, and it is also possible for the member to be attached at a different position for each optical recording medium. Also, it is possible to achieve a high accuracy in the attachment of the member using an apparatus with less accuracy if the position of the member is measured after it is attached and information indicating the measured position is recorded on the member.